Snow and Ice
by Kirsa Zenzi
Summary: A/U: She was just someone who needed work. He was just her employer. Neither one expected that this would end up being more than just an employer/worker relationship. Canada/Ukraine, and hints at Turkey/Ukraine and hints at other pairings
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

* * *

A single kiss started the entire relationship.

0-0-0

She looked out the window of the small carriage that she was riding in. A small one that could barely hold her and the woman sitting across from her with a slightly stern look on her face, long blond locks flowing down the elder woman's thin figure.

"You should learn proper etiquette while you are here," the woman started as emerald green eyes looked over at her. Katyusha Braginskaya nodded, her large chest jiggling with the movement of her head. Her large tracts had gotten her into trouble over and over again, knocking over dishes and tipping bottles and glasses.

This was probably not going to be any different than her other jobs. Already she had gone through five others because of all her 'accidents' that her breasts caused her. She couldn't do much, never having had an ounce of education and the only skill she had was to work as a maid for the rich.

Sometimes those jobs had led to more than just a simple maid job and that had scared her, causing her to run away from them and quit. Katyusha disliked the fact that she would have to quit some of the jobs she had, but she really didn't have much of a choice.

"You will be working for my sons," her new employer stated, waving a small face in front of her face. She was an elegant woman with high standards and had found Katyusha looking for work around the town. "You will listen to what they say and you will do what they ask, understood?"

"Y-Yes ma'am," Katyusha replied, looking down at her calloused hands from hard labor she had developed throughout her life. She fidgeted a bit, hoping that her new employers wouldn't make her do anything horrible that the others had tried to force on her.

As the carriage pulled up to their destination, Katyusha fixed her short, ash blond hair and the dark, yellowish headband that was in it. She wanted to make a good impression upon the people she would be meeting after all. She gathered up the single, small bag that she had with her and exited the hearse after her mistress, gazing upon the large house that now stood in front of her.

The Ukrainian woman was used to seeing mansions by now, but the designs of them never ceased to amaze her. This one was actually a bit smaller than the last one she had been at. The building itself had a few peaked points of the roof but, for the most part, it was rather flat. The color was a light blue with white trimming around the windows and shutters.

She didn't have much time to admire the scenery as she heard the loud clearing of the mistress's throat and she quickly walked over, not wanting to upset her. Katyusha stood on the patio like she was told as the woman went inside to speak with her sons about her.

_How many servants do they have?_ Katyusha wondered as she let her mind wander a bit. With the house this size, they had to have quite a few already. She hoped she could be of some use to them if they did have a lot of servants. But, then again, why would her mistress even bother if they had enough people?

Once again, Katyusha didn't have the chance to contemplate anything as the door opened to be greeted by a young woman who was shorter than herself and looked a lot younger. Beautiful raven locks extended down the woman's small figure and reached down towards her knees.

"Are you Ms. Katyusha?" she gentle and steady voice asked her.

"Y-Yes," the blond replied.

"Then please follow me. I shall take you to see the masters." She turned and headed back into the house. Katyusha stood there for a moment before she quickly wiped her shoes off and followed after.

She didn't try to look around, too focused on what her new masters were going to be like. She imagined that they would be strong and probably no different than most of the others she had worked for. All of them had been rather burly with moustaches or goatees or somewhere along those lines. She shook a bit as she thought of that.

"Um… m-may I ask what your name is?" Katyusha finally asked as they slowly approached doors at the end of the wall just off to the right.

"My name is Honda Sakura," the shorter replied as she stopped in front of the doors and turned towards Katyusha. "Please knock and wait for someone to tell you to enter." She bowed to her. "I shall see you later if possible." The woman walked off.

Katyusha looked at her, thinking about her name. It sounded Asian, but she wasn't entirely positive about it. She could probably ask about it later on when she didn't have her hands tied with more important matters. With a deep breathe, she knocked on the door and awaited an answer.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

* * *

"A new servant?" he asked. His voice was soft a timid, sitting with his hands neatly on his lap. "But we already have five."

"I realize that Matthew, but things aren't getting done in time when they are needed," the mistress, Alice, stated as she sat across from her sons. Both had golden locks but while Matthew, the youngest son, had lighter locks, his older brother had darker. "I want to make sure everything is completely done. With an extra hand, the men can do more of the harder labor around here while the women do the house work."

"What's so wrong about that Mattie?" the older brother asked, blue eyes looking over at him with a smile plastered on his face. "It's not going to be that bad."

Matthew looked between his mother and brother before nodding in reply. His brother, Alfred, was rather spoiled in his opinion. His mother treated them well, but he always felt that having servants was wrong in some way. He knew his family was rich and that himself and his brother had more important things to worry about, but he still couldn't help feeling this way. He wasn't at all like his mother who thought that social standings were important or his brother who was spoiled and didn't care if he had servants or not.

Matthew was terribly out of the loop when it came to his family. He was even far from being anywhere near the same person as his father (which he's been told he resembles more). He felt like he was the only one who felt like this, even his father didn't seem to mind having servants and maids. He felt like he was the only one who didn't like it.

_I wonder if I'm really even blood related to them…_ Matthew thought with a very soft sigh that no one could really hear.

"Matthew?" he heard his mother ask him, causing his head to slowly lift in response. "Is there anything wrong?"

"N-No mama," Matthew replied with a small smile, fixing his glasses back onto his face again. "I-I'm okay." The blond, British woman nodded as a knock came upon the door of the room the three were sitting in.

"Come in!" Alice called. Both Alfred and Matthew looked over as the door creaked open and Katyusha stepped in, causing Matthew to heavily blush as his eyes went straight to her assets. He quickly looked away, not wanting to seem rude for staring at them. Of course, his brother didn't exactly have the same curtsey as he did and ended up staring at them.

"Whoa… big tits…" Alfred stated, making Katyusha uncomfortable at that. "Ow!"

Alice stood near his eldest son, the fan she had being smacked across his head. "I thought I taught you to be courteous around women no matter what their social standing was!"

Alfred rubbed his head, nodding. "Sorry…" he mumbled as he averted his eyes away from the woman's chest. Katyusha curtsied to them.

"I-I'm Katyusha Braginskaya. I-It is nice to meet you."

Matthew bowed a bit to her. "It's nice to meet you as well. I'm Matthew Bonnefoy."

"And I'm the hero, Alfred F. Jon- Ow!"

"Stop using that name!" Alice warned her son, staring at him with a stern look as she adjusted her glasses back onto her own face.

"Alright, Alright… Yesh…" Alfred rubbed his head again. "Alfred Bonnefoy…"

"Good. I have to go so make sure Sakura shows her around."

"Yes mother," the two boys replied in unison before she walked off, walking pass the Ukrainian who curtsied as she left. Of course, the movement caused her chest to bob up and down with her and continued for a moment even when she was stopped moving.

Both of them stood up before walking over to their new maid. Both were much taller than her, but only by 5 or 6 inches. Both of them had blue eyes and glasses. Of course, Alfred just walked right pass the new maid and out the door.

"I'll show you to your room," Matthew replied with a smile. "Alfred will get Sakura and she'll show you around." Katyusha nodded before Matthew headed out of the door. He was surprised at his control at to not look at this woman's chest. Even one of the other maid's had a chest like hers.

_Not that I stare at them!_ Matthew stated in thought as his cheeks turned a bright red color at him even thinking of it. He was never one to degrade females in that sort of fashion. In all honesty, it he was noticed a bit more by them, or anyone, it would make him a bit happier. He shook his head though, ridding that thought from his mind.

He glanced back, seeing Katyusha looking around. He smiled a bit before looking back ahead. They came to a door at the end of the hall, a darker part of the entire house. He opened it before heading down the stairs where two other doors stood.

"This is where all the maids and butlers stay," Matthew commented softly before going to the door at the end, opening it. "Y-You'll be sharing a room with the other two girls."

0-0-0

Katyusha took a step inside, looking around. Three beds, two dressers, and a closet. It was a bit larger than she would have expected. She saw two of the beds had blankets (one with floral pink and the other with solid green) and sheets on them, so she walked over and set her small bag down on the third.

"I'll have Lucy run to the market to get you some sheets," she heard Matthew tell her. She turned and nodded in reply. She didn't need anything special as long as it covered her. She was used to being in worse situations. Dark lit basement that had mold growing in one corner and it was never heated. So this was new for her and she hoped she wouldn't have to move on again. "I'll have Sakura come get you, so you can rest."

Katyusha curtsied. "Thank you," she said as Matthew left, shutting the door behind him. She sighed and sat down and couldn't help to lay down on it. It was a soft mattress. It smelled a bit dusty, but she really didn't mind; having smelled worse.

"Katyusha," she heard her name being said, causing her to immediately sit up. She saw Sakura standing there, making her sigh with relief. Katyusha didn't know what she would have done if it had been Matthew or Alfred. They probably would have thought she was sleeping on the job.

"Y-Yes?"

"I shall show you around," Sakura said as she turned and walked out again. Katyusha immediately stood up and followed after. The two ascended the stair well in silence before they headed down the hall again. The white-wash walls were practically bare in this side of the hallway while others had picture frames hanging from it.

Katyusha was shown many rooms. The living room, where she had met them, was a light green color with peach color furniture and oak tables. She thought it was a bit strange, but she didn't comment that out loud. She was then shown where the kitchen was, being told that she would have to help out in there from time to time. It was a rather small kitchen, a long table in the middle for chopping and other things of the sort, a medium sized range, a few cherry oak cupboards, a large sink, and a cabinet to place drying dishes.

_I wonder how often they have to clean this place,_ Katyusha asked herself. She hadn't expected the kitchen to be one of the smaller places out of the entire place. So they probably had to constantly clean while cooking. She stood there for a moment more when Sakura continued on before following.

There was a music room, though it seemed as though it wasn't really touched; a dining room; several guest rooms; Alfred's and Matthew's rooms, for which Katyusha didn't linger in either and just taking a quick glance; and then she was shown outside. A garden that expanded several feet in three directions, a large field that eventually led into forest way off into the distance, and there was even a large barn not far from the garden with a fenced area.

"The fenced area is for horse training," Sakura explained as she saw the confused look on her face. "There are three horses."

"I see," was Katyusha's simple answer. It made sense on why they had a large fielded area so they could ride them. She had worked with horses as a child for a rich family she had been in while her parents worked. Just the memory filled her heart with sorrow a bit but also with a bit of joy. Her family had always been poor but they were at least well off for the most part.

"You may be asked to feed them from time to time," she heard Sakura tell her, snapping her out of her thoughts. "You are not afraid of them, are you?"

"Oh no, I'm perfectly fine around them."

"That is good to know. That is all that I have to show you. I am also supposed to ask if you have other clothes besides the ones you are currently wearing."

"Oh… I-I have one more but it doesn't feel all that comfortably," Katyusha replied, blushing ever so slightly. She had never had time to go out and get another outfit that fit her. Her chest just seemed to continue to grow and she really felt embarrassed by that fact.

"I see. I shall let the masters know," Sakura replied as she bowed to her. "If you will excuse me, I must start preparing dinner. The masters will give you work to do tomorrow."

"A-Alright," Katyusha replied as she watched Sakura walk off. She took a deep breathe, a bit glad that she wouldn't have to do much at the moment. Frankly she was exhausted from not sleeping well for five days. She sighed a bit, removing the necklace hidden under her high collar, lavender shirt. It was a small locket in the shape of a heart. She opened it, seeing the slightly ripped, black and white picture inside. Her younger self inside with hair that went to her shoulders and standing next to her were a young boy, taller than herself, and a young girl, shorter than her.

_Ivan… Natalia…_ Katyusha sighed and closed it up again, placing it back into her shirt to keep it hidden. She didn't want it to be taken from her. It was the last remaining artifact that she had from her younger siblings, both of which disappeared years earlier. Ivan had only been 10 and Natalia was only 5. Katyusha didn't have any clue to what happened to them or if they were still alive, but she hoped they were and that they were okay.

"Watch out!" a voice boomed once again snapping Katyusha out of her thoughts. She only had a second to look over and notice a dark figure coming towards her before she felt herself being grabbed and rolling along the ground.

She felt her heart pounding against her chest as she slowly opened her eyes, meeting with a white shirt on a broad chest. Katyusha didn't have much time to register things before she was being sat up.

"You alright?" the same voice from before asked, a softer tone to it. Katyusha blinked with a soft pink color dusting her cheeks before she actually looked up. Deep green eyes stared down into her blue ones and she couldn't help but blush a bit more. She could see that he had dark tanned skin and the beginning of a dark brown beard that matched his slightly messed up, dark brown hair.

"I-I'm alright," Katyusha finally replied after a few moments. "T-Thank you."

"You're welcome." He stood up before he ran after what had almost hit her. As she looked, she could see that it was a black stallion that had gotten loss. She sighed with relief, glad she hadn't been trampled by it. She brushed herself off before standing up, heading back inside. She should probably stay out of trouble for the rest of the night before she even started anything.

So, after her meal and meeting the rest of the servants, Katyusha went straight to bed to prepare herself for tomorrow.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

She woke up early the next morning, blinking as she realized that it was still a bit dark outside. The sun had barely started to leak through the small window of the room with the sun just beginning to rise. Katyusha softly yawned, not wanting to disturb her roommates. She slid out of her bed and fixed it up before changing back into the simple, slightly ripped light blue skirt with light peach trimming and her slightly ripped on the bottom, long sleeve, white , button-up shirt. She tucked the shirt into the top of her skirt before placing on her white flats and walking out of the room, being careful not to wake anyone up.

Katyusha walked up the dark staircase and upstairs, walking down the hall and once again being careful not to wake up Matthew or Alfred. She walked into the kitchen, seeing that there were a few dishes still left in the sink. She wondered why that was, but didn't question it. Instead, she did it herself, being careful not to knock them over. She would wash a few and then dry them and put them away, doing the same thing until all the dishes were done. She was glad when she didn't break a single one and cleaned up the kitchen a bit before she walked out of the room. Katyusha then walked outside, looking around the garden.

_It's beautiful out here,_ she thought, seeing the plethora of flowers. Roses, carnations, tulips, and many more. It seemed as though every single flower one could think of was there. The bushes were kept neat and the grass was trimmed. It was a wonderful sight to see. She had never seen a garden this well-kept before. She sat down on the steps and took in a deep breathe, letting the cleaner air fill her lungs.

_Neeeigh!_ the sound of a horse reached her ears, making her look around. Katyusha stood up, walking towards it. She walked through the garden and through a bit of the field before coming up to the barn, hearing the whining coming from near there. She looked around before seeing the horse in the distance in the corral, trying to get out.

"Come on…" Katyusha recognized that voice. It was the same one who called her to 'watch out' the first day she was there. She had later come to find out that his name was Sadiq Adnan and learned that he had traveled here from Turkey to find work so he could make money for his family.

The Ukrainian woman watched as the Turkish man carefully walked up to the wild horse before grabbing the reins and keeping him from going anywhere. She slowly made her way over, being careful not to spook the horse that had just been caught.

"Oh, morning Katyusha!" Sadiq greeted the minute he saw her. She smiled a bit and waved to him.

"G-Good morning," she greeted back once she was close enough. "You're up early."

"I couldn't sleep, so I came out here to try to train this horse."

"I see. Is it a new horse?"

"Not particularly. He's just a feisty thing is all, even after the year he's been here." Sadiq tied the reins to the fence post before climbing over and standing in front of the new servant there. "So, what are you doing up this early?"

"Oh, me? M-My body is kind of used to early mornings," Katyusha answered. "So I just decided to look around and try to remember where everything was before the day started."

"I see." Sadiq looked at the horse to his right side, carefully placing his hand on the animal's snout. "Do you like horses?"

"Eh?" Katyusha was a bit surprised with the sudden question but she nodded very slightly in reply, not sure what else to say in response. Sadiq nodded back but didn't even look at her when he did so and he didn't seem to want to answer in verbal form. The two just stood there in silence before Sadiq looked at the time on the pocket watch attached to his belt.

The taller man softly cursed, placing the object back into his pocket. Katyusha saw him untie the horse but, once again, it ran off. "I don't have time for this…"

"Do you have something else to do?" Katyusha asked.

"yeah… but I can't leave him running around."

"I-I can take care of it. I-If you have something more important to do, then you should go do it." Sadiq looked at her, raising a brow with both surprise and confusion.

"Are you sure?"

"Y-Yes… I haven't been told anything to do today, so it's fine."

Sadiq gave her a small smile. "Thanks. I owe you." He turned on his heels and quickly ran back towards the house without another word to the woman. Katyusha waited a moment before she opened the gate and stepped into the corral, closing it behind her.

The minute that happened, the horse, painted white with brown spots, stopped running and looked at her. The animal's bright, sky blue eyes stared into her slightly darker blue ones. Katyusha didn't move and let the creature stare at her before it bowed its head a bit. Katyusha couldn't help but smile a bit at that before she slowly made her way over. Once she was close enough, she returned her hand out and gently placed it on his snout, giving him a nice rub.

"It's alright," she said sweetly yet softly. "I won't hurt you."

Katyusha stood there and petted it for a few moments before she took the reins and led him back into the large, brown barn. She had honestly never seen a barn that was brown and not red and white in color. She wondered what the reason for that was, but she just pushed that thought aside. She didn't need to know the real reasons behind it anyways. She looked around the barn once inside though, noticing the high beams and the wide sides. It peaked at the top and all the stalls have doors and the hay sat in its own little alley to keep it organized. She noticed the two other horses, one completely black in color and the other completely brown.

The Ukrainian woman led the horse she had into the empty stall, noticing the name engraved into the wood, _Cit._ She looked at the horse before looking at the name again and then back once more.

"So your name is Cit?" she asked the horse who snorted in a sort of reply. She smiled and petted his snout again. "Cit… that's a nice name." Cit let out a soft whinny, making the blond softy laugh. She walked to the stall before stopping, seeing the inside of it. Hay covered the bottom and manure most of the hat, making it hard for a horse to even eat anything. It was _very_ noticeable that it hadn't been cleaned in awhile, especially with the color of the water. Dingy and slightly brown.

Katyusha tied Cit up before walking into the room and removing both the shovel and the wheel barrel inside. She brought them both up to the stall and started to scoop it out. After dumping the barrel five times, the stall had been completely cleaned out. She then proceeded to fetching clean water from the near-by well, which she had noticed when going to dump out the manure, and poured it into the water tank. Once she was satisfied, Katyusha placed Cit back into his stall before locking the gate up and getting him fresh hay.

She did the same with the other two stalls, repeating the same process as she had with the first. By the time the second one was nearly finished, the sun had already come up fully and peeked in through the small window above where the hay was stored.

Katyusha swiped the sweat from her forehead once she was completely finished, giving the last horse fresh hay. She was surprised no one had done this kind of work beforehand. Of course, all of them seemed to have other duties to attend to than caring for the horses. Once the shovel and wheel-barrel where placed back in their proper places, Katyusha headed back inside. She removed her dung covered shoes before she stepped into the house, leaving them outside and deciding to come back get them later.

She could hear the house bustling with activity the minute she shut the door. Sakura was cleaning the windows near the front entrance with a cloth and bucket of water by her side. Lucy, a woman with short blond hair and assets that were large but not quite like hers, running down the hall with clean sheets (or curtains. Katyusha wasn't sure which) in her arms.

She didn't see any of the males around though but she assumed that they were working diligently with other work. She stood there, unsure what to even say or do. She hadn't even noticed that the bottom of her skirt was caked in manure or that her short hair was sticking to her forehead. It didn't bother her at all.

"Katyusha!" The Ukrainian woman looked over, seeing a male with light auburn hair come running over to her with a slightly frantic look on his face. He was wearing a white button up shirt, a black tux (though it wasn't the most expensive since he was only a servant), and a black tie.

"Y-Yes, Feliciano?" she asked as she looked up at him, one of the few people who were actually close to her height.

"Ve… I've been looking for you all morning!"

"O-Oh! I-I'm so sorry! I-I was-"

"I-It's okay! But we have to go!"

Katyusha looked at Feliciano, confused. "Go…? Where?"

Feliciano took a few deep breaths to steady his breathing more so he wasn't gasping for air as he spoke. "I-I'm supposed to take you into town to get you proper working clothes."

"I-I see. I'm so sorry." Katyusha looked over at the door and opened it again, picking up her shoes and bringing them inside. "W-We can go now."

"Ve… O-Okay…" Feliciano cringed a bit at the slight smell that filled his nostrils. He didn't understand why Katyusha's shoes were caked in manure, but he didn't say anything. She probably had her reasons for it.

0-0-0

"R-Really…?" Katyusha asked as she helped with cooking lunch in the kitchen with Sakura. "I-I didn't know that…" She had returned only an hour before wearing a knee-length, black skirt and a new button-up, white shirt and a white apron (along with a few other clothes).

"Yes. No one has actually wanted to clean them out, so they end up getting up in that kind of condition," Sakura replied as she placed a few chopped carrots into a frying pan. "I am surprised that you said that you had done them when asked."

"W-Well… I-I didn't want to lie" Katyusha was never a good liar to begin with, so she always just fessed up when she had done something wrong or something along the lines. Most of the time, however, she didn't even have to. "I-I also felt bad for those horses, being in stalls looking like that. I-I was surprised that the other two horses were able to stay calm about it."

Sakura began to chop a few potatoes as she looked over at Katyusha, seeming a bit surprised by the words her co-worker had just spoken. "Are you suggesting that Cit was acting the way he did because of the condition he was living in?"

"I-I'm not saying that it's true, but probably."

"That is interesting…" Sakura returned to her chopping, not saying anything more. The two worked for a bit but, eventually, Sakura had Katyusha leave the kitchen when her chest kept knocking over too many bottles or other items. Something had told her that that would happen.

Once lunch was prepared, Katyusha's job was to serve it. Normally it was Lucy's job, but the German woman was preoccupied with other chores that were given to her.

"Hey! It's the new girl!" Alfred exclaimed as she pushed the small cart with the food into the dining room. Both masters were already sitting at the light oak table which had been cleaned to a fine shine.

"Alfred! Her name is Katyusha!" Matthew softly exclaimed, trying to keep his voice to an appropriate level for inside.

"Pssh… Not like I'll remember it."

"You should do a better job of doing it. I-It's appropriate."

"Geez… You should just like ma… You're really a mama's boy," Alfred stated rather bluntly, not seeming to care all that much that he had just insulted his brother. Matthew just looked down, mumbling a soft 'no I'm not' but he didn't really voice it enough for his brother to hear.

Matthew sighed as he looked back up to see his plate in front of him. Like always there were always vegetables, which he knew his older brother didn't care for all that much, and sliced stripes of steak and mashed potatoes were also on it. All neatly placed in their own small piles like it always was. Matthew knew that Sakura was always one for perfection when it came to food. He could remember one time when him, Alfred, and Sakura all went shopping together and Sakura got mad at Alfred when he tried to pick up something expensive.

"_It's not healthy for you and you do not need it!"_ he remembered her yelling, which had made Alfred cringe and retreat away from the expensive cut of meat.

"Um… d-did you two want some wine?" Katyusha asked, seeming rather nervous though Matthew didn't know why. He looked up at her, giving a small smile to her.

"Yes please," he politely replied. She nodded and poured some into Matthew's glass.

"Lay it on me too!" Alfred shouted, holding his glass out. Katyusha walked around and poured Alfred some as well. She took a step away before walking towards the cart again, but it didn't go as smoothly as anyone would have though. A small trip from her foot hitting the leg of the chair and Katyusha fell, the wine bottle flying from her hands and, unfortunately, crashing onto his head. Red liquid flowed from his light, golden blond hair and a few shards of glass stuck as well.

"Ah! I-I'm so sorry, Master Matthew!" Katyusha apologized, taking a napkin and quickly starting to dab his clothes.

"I-It's alright…" Matthew replied as he started to pick the shards from his hair. He looked at the woman next to him, dabbing and trying to quickly clean him up with a frantic look. He pushed out his chair and stood up, a small yet nervous smile crossing his features. "I-I'll just go clean up."

0-0-0

Alfred stared in disbelief as he saw the bottle crash on his younger brother's head. Never had he seen someone this clumsy when it came to things. He watched as his brother walked out before he looked at Katyusha, seeing her beginning to clean up the mess she had created.

He didn't want to yell at her but he also knew this couldn't go unpunished. He softly sighed so Katyusha couldn't hear. He was told to be nice to women by his mother but also to discipline the lower class when needed. Alfred didn't even know how that was even possible. How could he do that without hurting her feelings?

"I-I'm so sorry," he heard Katyusha say, causing him to look up at her as she placed the glass onto the cart. "I-I'll do anything you w-want to m-make up for it." In her eyes he could see small tears welling up, about ready to surge over the bottom lid. He could tell that she was genuinely sorry for her clumsiness.

"…Ah… Just…" Alfred didn't know what to really say to all of it. It was hard for him to punish her while she looked like that. "…you'll go without dinner…"

"Y-Yes, Master Alfred," Katyusha softly said before walking out of the room with the cart. He sighed, hating to do that but he didn't have much of a choice. He really didn't know what else he could do to punish her besides more work, but there wasn't much else to do when it came to the house since all of it had already been assigned. He shook his head, starting to eat so he could stop thinking about it.

0-0-0

"Here, I snuck something for you," Katyusha heard Lucy say, holding out a slice of bread out to her. She looked up, shaking her head.

"N-No. I won't eat it…" Katyusha looked back down at the grass underneath her feet. She always took punishments seriously since she didn't want to get in trouble. She didn't mind though, she had had worse punishments before in her life.

"You need something to keep your strength up…" Lucy sat down next to her, still offering her the bread. "It's not like you'll get in trouble for eating just a little bit."

"I-It's alright… I-I've gone an entire day without food. One meal won't kill me." Lucy looked over at her, seeming to be a bit surprised at hearing this since Katyusha still looked as though she ate every meal everyday.

"You've had it rough, huh?" the German woman asked, sitting down next to her.

"Yes."

Lucy sighed and took a piece of the bread, eating it. "Master Alfred and Master Matthew aren't going to punish you for eating a bit. I've been here for 4 years and they've never complained about it. Well, unless their mother is around."

"Still…" Katyusha looked over at Lucy. "I deserve it. I-I messed up and probably ruined Master Matthew's clothes. T-This is such a… um… what to call it…" she fell silent for a moment as she tried to think of the right words. "…this is a rather kind punishment for something like that."

A single brow arched on the German woman's forehead. "You've had worse punishment for something accidental like that?" Katyusha nodded, looking back out at the scenery as the last specks of sunlight began to fade away. "I see…"

Katyusha said nothing more as Lucy returned inside, the talking from the other servants traveling out of the door for a moment before becoming silent again. She looked over and saw the five chatting away as though nothing was wrong or that they hadn't even been working all day. She sighed, looking away again.

_I wonder if I'll be able to be like that someday,_ she thought, never really being able to make any friends with her constant changing of jobs. She removed the locket from her blouse and looked at the picture inside. It always made her feel better when she looked at it. It was something that kept her going. She had hoped that, one day, she could see her little brother and sister again.

It was only hope that kept her going, and she didn't know what she would do without it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4:**

A week was all the time Katyusha needed to adjust to the new household she was currently in. She had made a few mistakes, though everyone thought they were too minor to worry about, but everything else ran smoothly. Never had Katyusha expected to be treated as more than just a simple maid. She was used to being smacked or even had her clothes torn when she made a mistake. Not this time though. This place had a different atmosphere, a different feel to it. It made it easier to work and stay relaxed.

Her duties, for the most part, was caring for the horses and keeping the barn clean. She didn't mind it. She was used to working out in fields or tending to gardens. Katyusha thought it was better suited for her than inside house work. On some days, she would help train the horses to which she mainly took care of Cit. He seemed to like her better than Sadiq anyways.

"Have you ever ridden before?" Sadiq asked her when she fell from the saddle she tried to get up on. The saddle wasn't tightened enough and so it slid a down on the painted horse.

"No," Katyusha replied, picking herself up from the ground. She had been given proper clothing for working with the horses. She still had a white, button-up, long sleeve shirt but instead of a skirt she wore blue overalls that were tucked into calf-high boots. "I've been around them but I've never ridden."

Sadiq got off the black horse he was on and walked it over towards Cit who snorted at him. Katyusha petted him to keep him calm. She was handed the reins of his horse before Sadiq walked over and fixed the saddle, making sure it was tight so it wouldn't slid down again.

"You need to make sure it's tight," Sadiq explained, showing Katyusha how to properly make the saddle stay where it was. "Otherwise you'll have a hard time riding or it'll slip off, or the same thing will happen as it just did."

"I-I'm sorry for troubling you…" Katyusha apologized as she watched the Turkish man's hands move with a swift yet steady motion. Even though she spent time with horses, her father never had any time to teach her to ride. She shook her head a bit, tossing that idea from her head for the time being. She didn't want to focus on the past right now. She had to focus on the task at hand.

"Alright. Try again." Sadiq relinquished the other reins from the Ukrainian woman's hands and took a few steps backwards with his horse to give Katyusha more room just in case.

Katyusha moved back to the side of Cit, placing her foot into the saddle and swinging her other leg over. She smiled a bit when she was able to sit on it properly without the saddle moving on her.

"Thank you, Sadiq," she said as she adjusted herself on it. She waited a moment and waited until Sadiq was on his horse before she gently tapped the side of the horse, the way that the Turkish man had told her to do.

The horse started moving at a slow pace, getting used to the feel of the Ukrainian woman on top of him. Cit snorted a bit, seeming to dislike all of the uneven weight on him, but that didn't last long the more he walked.

"Alright. Try to put him into a canter," Sadiq said, though it was only a suggestion. Katyusha nodded in reply as she gently tapped the sides of Cit again and he quickened his pace a bit, though the rough movements made Katyusha a bit uncomfortable since her chest kept bouncing up and down.

After hours outside training the horses, Katyusha and Sadiq returned inside for their morning meal since Alfred and Matthew had finished theirs and left for the day. All of the servants went to work after their meal.

0-0-0

Matthew softly sighed as he sat in the carriage, heading back towards the house after having a long talk with his father. His brother had stayed at their parents' house, being given a long lecture by their mother. However, he wasn't alone. Violet colored eyes looked up at the man sitting across from him. He had wavy blonde hair down to his shoulders and stubble on his chin.

"Père?" the soft man asked, making the older man look over at him with a questioning look.

"Oui, mon petit garçon," the man replied in his slightly heavy French accent. It was always noticeable that the Bonnefoy family had mixed cultures, especially based on the way that Matthew spoke French a lot with his father but he looked more English than French.

However, Alfred had never really been the one to try and learn French. He would always say 'it's too much trouble! It's not like I'm going to use it anyway!' and then he would be scolded by both of his parents afterwards. Matthew, however, had always thought that learning his father's native tongue was fun even if it were difficult at first.

"Why are you coming back to the house with me?" Matthew asked a bit too quietly, not wanting to upset his father in anyway.

"I want to see how things are going with that new maid your mother hired," he replied as he sat up a bit more in his seat and looked at his son. "If she's not doing a good job then we'll have to get rid of her."

"O-Oh… Well… I think she does a good job. I mean, she doesn't do the normal work like the other maids, but she still does a good job."

The Frenchman raised a brow in confusion as he heard that. _Not the same as the other maids?_ he repeated this question in thought as he slightly peered out the window. He was a bit curious to find out what that actually entailed. Of course, being who he was, his mind on went to one thing but he wasn't going to think about that sort of thing at the moment. He would have to see if his conclusion was right first. His wife, Alice, had always scolded him for jumping to conclusions before he knew the real answer to all of it.

The minute they arrived, Matthew and his father stepped out of the carriage, a dark auburn haired man holding it open for him. "Thank you, Lovino," Matthew softly thanked before he led his father into the house.

"Good day to you, Master Bonnefoy, Master Matthew," Sakura greeted with a bow as she was passing by with some laundry in her arms.

"Good day to you as well, Sakura~" Matthew's father, Francis, greeted back with a smile. "Is everything going well with you~?"

"Yes. Thank you for asking." Sakura gave a small bow once again. "If you will excuse me, I must complete my tasks." Francis nodded in reply before watching as Sakura walked off to complete the chores that she still had laid out in front of her. Francis looked back over at his son, having to look up at him since Matthew was taller than him.

"Now, where is this new maid?" he asked before looking around the room to see if he could somehow spot her. Matthew looked around before he spotted Lucy.

"Lucy!" he called, catching the German woman's attention as she looked over at him.

"Yes?" she asked in her heavy accent. Lucy wasn't one to really talk much when it came to things so her accent was still heavy, despite the fact of how long she had been working in England.

"Do you know where Katyusha is?"

"Last I saw she was outside taking care of the horses."

"Thank you!"

Lucy nodded before she returned her attention to her work with a bucket in her hand. Matthew smiled a bit before looking over at his father who had a slightly serious look on his face, making him swallow a bit nervously.

"W-What's wrong?" he asked, hoping he hadn't done anything wrong.

"Mon Dieu Mattieu…" Francis sighed and shook his head, folding his arms over his chest. "Je croyais vous avoir dit de bien traiter les femmes." Matthew cringed a bit at that, knowing that he always treated woman nicely.

"Père, je fais… elle était juste adapté pour le travail plus…"

"Vraiment?"

"Si…"

"Alright. Let's go meet her then so I can decide if she's really worth keeping around and spending money on," Francis finally said in English as he dropped his arms back to his side. Matthew nodded and the two went outside.

On the way, Francis looked around the garden to make sure that it was being kept. He nodded and continued to follow his son, neither one speaking the whole way. Matthew was used to silence and, in most cases, preferred it than speaking. Though his brother was the one who was more rambunctious than he was and would always be scolded more. Matthew, however, was a bit jealous of his brother for being able to be more open about things. He had learned to be quiet and listen and had always wanted to be more confident with things like his brother was.

Matthew snapped out of his slight daze as they arrived at the barn door. It was opened and he couldn't help but blush a bit as he saw Katyusha softly speaking to Cit. The small bit of light that shone through the small window cast down on her, making it look as though she weren't really there and just a figment of his imagination or some sort of angel. Matthew felt his cheeks warming up as he thought of that.

"Oh!" Katyusha's voice came, making him break from a daze once again as she saw her bow to them. "M-Master Matthew… I-I didn't know you were back… a-and M-Master Bonnefoy…" Matthew was surprised that Katyusha knew who his father was, especially since he had never told her about him. He figured one of the other servants had told her about him, which was probably better that way.

"Katyusha, correct?" Francis asked as he walked up to her, noticing that she was almost eye level with him.

"Y-Yes sir," Katyusha replied, giving a small smile to him.

"How old are you?"

"I-I'm almost 24 sir."

"You don't look that old," Francis commented, having thought that she was about 19 or 20. Katyusha blushed a bit at the compliment.

"I know. I-I don't know why that is," she replied. "I'm sorry for my appearance." She looked down at her clothes, having a bit of dirt on them from cleaning the horses and cleaning the stalls. Francis softly chuckled a bit.

"No, No. It's fine. You're doing your job and I came over unannounced." Katyusha nodded at that but she didn't say anything, unsure of what she _could_ say. "So, are you enjoying your work?"

"O-Oh yes," Katyusha replied with a smile. "It's very fun."

"That's good. Just keep doing it without having to worry too much, alright?"

"Yes sir." Francis smiled and let Katyusha return to her work. He then walked over and saw that Matthew's cheeks were a deep red color, making him wonder what was wrong with his son. He took his hand and pulled him out of the barn, causing Matthew to snap out of his daze once more.

Once they were back in the house, Francis took Matthew to the living room and had him sit down.

"What's wrong with you?" he then asked, turning towards Matthew with a curious look on his face. He wasn't mad but he was a bit concerned about the behavior that he was displaying.

"Huh?" Matthew was confused by the question that his father had asked him, not seeming to have noticed his own behaviors. "What do you mean?"

"You've been acting strangely since we went to the barn," Francis pointed out as he sat down next to Matthew, looking at him in the eyes. "Why is that?" Matthew felt his cheeks heat up again as he began to fiddle with his glasses.

"I-I don't know…" he replied, not really sure of what it was. He didn't know anything about how he was feeling and it even puzzled him when he actually thought about it. "Maybe I'm getting sick or something…"

Francis frowned as he heard this from his son. He walked over and placed a hand on his forehead, noticing that it was a bit warmer than it should be. "Mattieu… you should go rest, alright?"

"But… what about tonight?"

"I'll have one of the servants get you up before then, alright?" Matthew nodded as he stood up and walked out of the room. Francis watched before softly sighing, running a hand through his hair. He knew how much Matthew worked, probably a lot more than Alfred did so he didn't mind having Matthew rest up for a while. However, the Frenchman really hoped that it wasn't anything worse than a bit of overworking on his part.

_I hope that's all it is…_ Francis said in thought as he sat down on the couch and gave out a soft sigh. If it were something else other than that, then he would probably have a hard time trying to explain it to his wife. He knew she could be a real pickler when it came to things about her sons. With a deep breath, he stood up and walked out to check things out more.

Of course, when he saw Katyusha walk in from outside, he walked over to her. "Katyusha, can I ask a few questions?" he asked as he looked at her in the eyes. Katyusha blinked but nodded in reply , wondering what it was that he would need to ask her. Francis guided her into the living room and had her sit down across from him.

"What's your full name and your age?" Francis began questioning, deciding he needed to know this.

"Katyusha Braginskaya," the Ukrainian woman replied. "I'm 23 years old."

"I see. Do you have any family?"

Katyusha looked down at she was asked this, gently taking a bit of the cloth on her pants into her hands. It was a hard subject for her to speak about, especially since she didn't know much about where they were.

"I…I have a brother and sister, both younger than I am. Though… I'm not really sure where they are." Francis raised a brow in confusion, wondering what that meant but he decided he wouldn't ask. He could see the hurt expression in her eyes and how much it hurt her just to speak about it. He wondered if it meant that they were dead and she didn't want to admit it or if she really didn't know anything about where they were.

"I see," Francis softly said. "Why did you decide to be a servant? I'm sure you could have gotten a job somewhere more to your skills."

"I tried them," Katyusha replied. "I always got fired because my chest was always knocking things over and breaking things. I… I also wasn't the most graceful person either. N-Not saying it's changed much, I'm still like that it was just better for me to be a servant because I could do things that _could_ be more suited to me."

"I see. Do you like working with the horses?"

Katyusha finally looked up again and gave a small smile. "I do. I've loved animals since I was a child and I always helped my father when it came to the barns where he worked."

Francis smiled at hearing this. "That's good. We really could use someone to care for them more. Not saying the Sadiq isn't doing a good job, but he has a lot of other duties that acquire his attention."

"Yes… I-I saw that…"

"Normally we couldn't let a female work in a barn, but I think it's fine as long as you're enjoying yourself and you're doing a good job."

"Thank you sir. I-Is that all? I have to get back to work."

"Yes. That's all. Thank you for taking the time to talk." Katyusha nodded before she excused herself and went to go change so she could start to help clean the hallways with Lucy. Francis waved to her as she left before his smile faded a bit. "She's three years older than Matthew, even though she doesn't look it."

Francis shrugged as he stood up once more. He was probably just overthinking things anyways so he wasn't going to really bother trying to figure out if Matthew actually thought Katyusha was pretty or not. However, it didn't mean that he was going to give up on that idea all together. If he needed, he would get involved in that sort of thing and remind his son of the status that the two were in and how different they were. A servant of lower status and a master of a higher status. Different worlds that could never intertwine.

* * *

**A/N: OMG! I did not realize I hadn't been updating things for stories lately I feel so bad about it, I'm really sorry. This chapter has been finished for awhile now and I thought I had uploaded it but then I saw that I hadn't! I'm sorry! Please enjoy this chapter and thank you for enjoying the story thus far!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5:**

Matthew felt himself being shaken away, though he didn't particularly like the idea. He had been sleeping for a while without realizing it at all. He groaned a bit, slightly opening his eyes to see a blurry face in front of him. Not having his glasses on, he couldn't really tell who it was.

"Master Matthew," the soft voice came, but he was still half asleep to really know who was talking to him.

"What…?" the blond softly asked, searching for his glasses before placing them on to his face. There, in front of him, was Katyusha who had a slightly worried expression on her face.

"A-Are you alright?" Katyusha asked.

"I guess. Just… tired…"

"W-Well, you should at least take some medicine," Katyusha commented as he stood up straight and reached for the medicine bottle on the table. Matthew seemed a bit confused by this, wondering why he would need medicine for just feeling a bit tired.

"Why do I need medicine?" he asked, now noticing how much softer his voice was than normal. As more of his body started to wake up, he realized that he felt a little dizzy and his throat was a bit dryer than normal as well. "N-Never mind…"

Katyusha said nothing as she handed out a small cup to him. She then helped him sit up enough for the man to take his medicine before tucking him in again. Matthew sighed, not understanding how he could have caught a cold. Sure, he knew that he didn't have the strongest immune system, but he also knew that he wouldn't have gotten sick so fast. It made him wonder if this was the reason his father told him to go sleep.

"What about the party?" Matthew asked as he looked over at Katyusha who was cleaning the sweat from his forehead.

"Master Bonnefoy said that you don't have to worry about that," Katyusha commented with a gentle smile. "He said he'd rather you get better than have to worry about it. So just get some rest and Sakura will bring some food up to you."

"A-Alright…"

"I have to go take care of some things now, but I'll have Sakura come bring you some food a little later."

"T-Thank you, Katyusha…" Matthew yawned a bit, setting his glasses back on his night stand as he heard the door close. He sighed and turned onto his side, looking at the drapery that hung close over his window. Matthew was used to being sick, having been a rather sickly child.

Despite the fact that he didn't get sick as often any more, he still got sick more than anyone else around the house. The servants even got sick less often than himself. However, Matthew thought it was inconvenient that he had to get sick before the dinner party. It was normally really important for him to be there so he didn't disgrace his family but, at the same time, he could barely move at the moment. Matthew let out a soft sigh once again before he drifted off to sleep again, hoping that he would feel better by that time.

0-0-0

"Katyusha," Sadiq called from down the hall. The Ukrainian woman turned to face him, carrying a few dirty dishes in her hands to take to Sakura in the kitchen.

"Yes?" she asked, wondering what was going on. Sadiq walked over to her and took a deep breath before he started to speak.

"Master Bonnefoy would like us to make sure the stalls and barn are clean before tonight."

"How come?" Katyusha never had to worry about preparing for dinner parties since she was normally told not to go from her previous masters. This was normally because of her clumsiness but she had never actually heard of needing to make sure that barns were cleaned. Of course, she normally didn't have a job like that in the first place.

"He said he would show a demonstration on how tame the horses are. I don't know why but that's just what he said. He also wants us to clean the horses and make sure they're prepared."

"I see. I'll come out right after I put these in the kitchen."

"Alright." Sadiq smiled and waved before heading out to the barn, dressed in his outside working attire. Katyusha let out a small sigh and quickly placed the dirty dishes into the kitchen for Sakura to clean before she quickly went to go change. She tried to bind her chest up a bit before she buttoned up her shirt.

The Ukrainian woman then made her way outside to help Sadiq. She hoped that everything would go well with the dinner party and that she wouldn't mess anything up when it came to it. She also hoped, for once, that her clumsiness wouldn't get in the way of anything.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6:**

Everything was ready for tonight as the hour drew near for the party to start. Katyusha was placing on nicer cloths and making sure that her riding attire was cleaned for later. She even made sure that her boots were clean from horse manure and everything such as that. She used the small mirror in her room to make sure that her hair looked nice and that it wasn't in the way so she could see what she was doing.

After a few moments, she walked back out and went to check on Matthew. It was one of the things that she had to do before the party actually started. However, she stopped right in the middle of the hall when she saw said man slowly walking towards her. Matthew was dressed in a nice tux and his hair was combed out. However, Katyusha could still tell that he was still sick and knew that he shouldn't be out of bed yet.

"M-Master Matthew…!" she squeaked and walked over, stopping him from advancing any father. "You should be in bed, not out here…!"

"I-I'll be fine," Matthew replied, trying to keep up the front that he was alright and wasn't sick. "I can't miss an important party."

"You'll only end up making yourself worse. Please, go back to bed right now before I-"

"Katyusha… I'll be fine… please… don't tell anyone that I'm still feeling bad…" Katyusha blinked and didn't really know what else to say. The tone in the taller man's voice was almost begging and a bit painful. Katyusha could see in his eyes how much he didn't want to disappoint his family.

"….f-fine….. but please let me be able to make sure you'll be fine," Katyusha said, frowning a bit. "It wouldn't serve your family well if you ended up collapsing from your cold… a-and it would be better for your health if you didn't stay up too late."

Matthew listened to the words that the woman in front of him spoke. The only thing he did was nod in reply, not wanting to get worse. He knew he could do what he wanted, but the look in Katyusha's eyes made it hard for him to say no to it. He could tell that she really _was_ worried about him. With his reply, Katyusha let out a sigh of relief and a small smile.

The Ukrainian woman was relieved to know that Matthew would do what she said. After all, she didn't want to get in trouble for letting Matthew walk around while he was sick.

"I'll excuse myself and continue to help out with party preparations," she stated as she gave a small bow before she walked off. Matthew watched before he let out a small sigh, wondering if he would really be alright. He couldn't help but feel a bit upset that he was the most prone to catch a cold in his family.

Matthew couldn't even remember a time when Alfred was sick and he knew it had been awhile since his mother and father were sick as well. He didn't understand what was wrong with him and catching colds, but he didn't like it.

0-0-0

It only took an hour before nobles arrived at the house. Alfred and Matthew greeted them with a smile before they walked over to their father and mother to speak with them. Alfred frowned a bit as he looked over at his little brother. He could tell that Matthew wasn't doing well at all, but he didn't know what to say to him. Alfred couldn't say anything now. It was too late for that now.

_I hope Mattie will be okay…_ Alfred thought as he greeted another couple with a smile, shaking their hand in the process. It wasn't long before Alfred and Matthew were allowed to stop their greeting and wander around the ballroom where everyone else was. Matthew let out a sigh as he got himself a cup of juice, needing something to quench his thirst.

As he looked around the room, he could see Lucy and Feliciano carrying trays with finger foods to the guests and Lovino was carefully carrying glasses of champagne to the adult guys. There weren't many underage guests that were around Alfred and Matthew's age. He couldn't see Sakura, Sadiq, or even Katyusha though. Though, he figured it'd be better for Katyusha not to be in a room where she could trip easily.

_I wonder if mama and papa are mad at me for coming out of my room when I'm still sick,_ Matthew thought, looking down a bit as he leaned against the back wall near an empty corner.

"Hey Mattie~" Alfred smiled as he walked over, making the younger brother jump at a bit at the sudden appearance.

Matthew looked up, giving a weak smile. "H-Hi Al…" he greeted a bit weakly. He could feel that his cold was getting a bit worse but he didn't want anyone to know that. Alfred frowned and leaned against the wall next to his brother.

"You really should go back to bed. Mom and Dad aren't going to get mad at you for not being here."

Matthew sighed and looked down. "B-But… I don't want people to think I'm a disappointment…"

"No one will think that if you're sick. People aren't _that_ heartless."

"Yeah…."

"Then you should go rest."

"I-I can't now," Matthew stated as he looked up at his brother. "Everyone will think that I don't want to be here if I suddenly just get up and leave…" Alfred frowned, sighing and looking down since he knew that his brother was right. If Matthew left without his father saying so, people would think that he was just disrespectful.

"I'll go talk to dad, okay? I'm sure he'll take you to your room if I ask him to."

"Al… i-it's fine, really. Once I drink something, I'll be fine."

Alfred sighed. "Okay… but if I see something's really wrong with you, I'm getting dad to take you back to your room, okay?" Matthew just nodded in reply as he sipped his juice, saying nothing more on the matter.

Matthew really didn't want to worry anyone, but he also didn't want to seem like a bad son. His father and mother had always made good impressions on their other noble friends and all of them had children with them. He didn't want to be the one to ruin his parents' good reputation because he's sick. Sure, people might understand but he also knew that there were a lot of people who wouldn't.

He could still remember when he was a child that some of his teachers at school didn't understand that he was sick and needed the rest at home. As a child, he was a lot sicklier then than he was today. Matthew wouldn't be able to get up and everything spun so fast it made him puck a lot.

Matthew shook his head, not wanting to think about that. He felt like he might make himself sick if he did. He took in a deep breath and got more juice before he went back to mingling like he was supposed to. He really hoped that nothing bad was going to happen to him while he was out here.

0-0-0

As the party continued, Francis asked everyone to come see the horses that were there, wanting to show off how much they had been trained. Katyusha and Sadiq quickly changed into appropriate clothing before they followed everyone. A few of the other nobles couldn't help but whisper about the young servant woman that was following them.

"Is she really working with the horses? What is Mr. Bonnefoy thinking?"

"I don't know… maybe he's lost his mind of something."

"There's no way that she's been training horses. She must just be coming out to help."

More and More murmurs continued but Francis ignored them. Sadiq, however, didn't like to hear it. He _knew_ how much work Katyusha had put into helping to train and to take care of the horses, but he also knew he couldn't say anything. After all, he was just a servant and he could get fired for saying anything rude to the other nobles. He glanced at Katyusha with his auburn colored eyes and noticed that she wasn't letting it get to her. Katyusha had heard word abuse like this before and she knew by now to just ignore it.

"Alright. While Katyusha and Sadiq get out the horses, I just want to tell you that they have been training these horses for a while," Francis commented.

"What about Cit?" a young noble man asked. "Last time I heard he was still putting up a fight." Most of them knew how much Cit disliked others, so they were a bit skeptical about what to expect from that horse this time.

"He's been getting trained as well by Katyusha." Francis looked over as Katyusha walked out with Cit, having a good handle on him. The others watched, a bit amazed at how Cit wasn't bucking his head or even trying to escape like he had tried to do originally.

Francis smiled a bit as he watched Katyusha and Sadiq enter the corral, both making sure that the saddles were tightened before getting up. Katyusha adjusted her weight a bit for Cit, knowing that he didn't like the uneven weight.

"Good boy," Katyusha softly said as she petted the horse's neck as a thank you. Cit snorted a bit in reply before Katyusha started walking him around, Sadiq following behind her and being careful not to get too close. It was bit hard to see the two sometimes since the torch lights weren't present around the entire corral, but everyone saw it enough to know how well the horses had been trained.

As they continued to watch, Katyusha and Sadiq continued to up how much they were working the horses until they were in full sprints around the arena. Of course, it only took a few seconds for Cit to stop, causing Katyusha to fall off from him suddenly stopping. She cringed and got up, looking at the horse.

"What's wrong, Cit?" she asked, knowing that animals had a good sense when it came to danger. Sadiq stopped and got off his horse, walking over to Katyusha.

"Are you alright, Katyusha?" he asked.

"I'm alright, but I think we should go back to where there's light. I believe Cit thinks there's something dangerous over here." Sadiq frowned and looked over to where Cit was staring. He didn't see anything but he nodded, slowly taking his horse's reigns and slowly walking back towards where Francis and the others were. Katyusha did that same but Cit didn't move very fast.

"It's alright," she softly told Cit as she petted on his neck. "We'll be okay." She tried to be comforting as possible but even she was a bit nervous on what could be out there. If it caused Cit to stop so suddenly like that, it couldn't have been good.

"What's wrong?" Francis asked as he walked over to where Sadiq and Katyusha were.

"Katyusha thinks that Cit thinks there's something over there," Sadiq commented as he pointed in the direction they had just come from. "Cit stopped suddenly and it made Katyusha fall off. We didn't see it safe to risk it."

"I understand." Francis looked over at his guests and had them all return to the house, thinking they had seen enough for the night. He turned back to Sadiq. "Sadiq, go get my gun from the shed near the barn." Sadiq nodded and handed his horse's reigns to Katyusha.

"Can you take them back to the barn?" he asked her. Katyusha nodded and began leading both of them towards the gate of the corral, but Cit immediately stopped at it. Katyusha blinked and looked up at him.

"What's wrong, Cit?" she asked, frowning a bit. Cit snorted and neighed, not wanting to go out there. "It'll be okay. We're going back to the barn where it's safe." Cit just snorted again, pulling Katyusha back into the corral with the other horse. Katyusha didn't understand what was going on until she heard the sound.

A snarl is what she heard, something she hadn't wanted to hear. Cit pulled her into the light more with the other horse and stopped. Katyusha stood next to Cit, wondering if he knew they shouldn't move from the light. She had the other horse stand on her other side and she looked around, worriedly.

The snarl got louder as it got closer, making Katyusha even more nervous than before. She was there alone at the moment, Francis having followed Sadiq to the shed just in case. She couldn't help but wonder if she was really alright out here in the corral. Cit touched his muzzle to her cheek, trying to reassure her that everything would be alright. Katyusha smiled a bit and calmed down a bit, but she still didn't like the situation that she was in right now.

However, the other horse didn't seem to like the sound, starting to snort and whinny from fright. Katyusha held onto him though. "I-It's okay, calm down," she softly said, trying not to draw any attention to herself. The horse didn't listen though, continuing to buck and whinny, eventually breaking free from Katyusha's grip.

The Ukrainian woman cringed, looking down at her slightly bleeding hands since the reigns had cut into her. She looked up and watched as the horse ran off and jumped the fence. "C-Co-" she was barely able to say anything before the screech of the horse came and the echo slowly died out. She swallowed nervously, moving a bit closer to Cit.

Silence soon filled the air, making Katyusha nervous again. She ignored the pain in her hands as she looked around. Whatever was out there, she didn't like it and she _definitely_ didn't want to find out what it was. She hoped that Sadiq and Francis would get back soon.

* * *

**A/N: Hello everyone! I apologize for the long wait for the update of this story. So much has been going on around here that it's been a little hard to concentrate on writing anything. So, instead of one chapter (which was pretty short) I have brought you two chapters for your enjoyment! Aren't I nice? Anyways, I hope that you all enjoy and I really appreciate your patience!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7:**

"Are you alright?" Sadiq asked, carefully wrapping Katyusha's hands to keep it from bleeding any more than it already had. The Ukrainian woman was silent, not sure how she was supposed to answer. She didn't like this at all and she was still nervous. The snarls and growls she had heard still rang through her head.

"I-I'm okay…" she then softly replied after a few minutes of silence. "M-My hands just sting i-is all…"

"Well, they were cut pretty deep, but they should heal as long as you keep up on the medical support it needs."

Katyusha nodded as she continued to watch until Sadiq was finished. He placed everything back into the medical box before standing up with the box in his hands.

"Get some rest," Sadiq commented. "I'm sure Mr. Bonnefoy will have something for you to do in the morning." Katyusha nodded in reply as the Turkish man walked out of the room. She sighed and looked down at her hands, already seeing a bit of blood starting to soak through the bandages. She knew she shouldn't think about it, but those sounds still wouldn't leave her head.

When she continued to think about it more, she could clearly remember everything that had happened earlier.

0-0-0

Katyusha stood there, trying to keep the blood from her hands from dripping onto the ground. Whatever was out there, she knew would try to attack if any of it got onto the dirt. She moved a bit closer to Cit, nearly pressing up against the horse. After hearing the loud noise the other horse made, she could only fear the worse.

_It's alright, Katyusha,_ she told herself in thought to help with her nerves. _It'll be alright. As soon as Sadiq and Mr. Bonnefoy come back, it'll all be fine._

Even though she told herself this, the fear kept building up when the snarls and growls got even louder than before. Her body shook and she didn't know what she was going to do and, just barely, she could make out the silhouette of the creature. A wolf and a not so friendly one at that. She nervously swallowed, blood trickling down her arm and a few drops hitting the ground. Another snarl, this time from behind where she was standing. Katyusha felt her blood run cold at the sound, nearly freezing in place.

In most situations, she would fight back. However, with the fact that her hands were bleeding and she was in pain from both it and the fall she took, she couldn't. She hoped that her standing still would make it so they wouldn't attack. Of course, the minute of them stepped into sight, she knew she had been wrong. The Ukrainian woman's entire body seemed to freeze and the light in her eyes vanished. In that instant, Katyusha could see her life flashing before her eyes and the next thing she knew, the animal was lying dead on the ground a few feet away.

"Katyusha! Are you okay!?" she heard Sadiq's voice ask. She could just _barely_ register what he said. She was heavily breathing, not even realizing that she had been holding in a breath as she heard a gunshot go off behind her, the whimper of the wolf soon after. She blinked and pivoted to look behind her, seeing the wolf there dead.

"Katyusha?" She then heard Francis's voice ask. She turned back around and saw both men standing near her. "Are you alright?"

"I….I…." Katyusha had to swallow to moisten her throat again. "I….I think… so…" she then replied, her voice shaking heavily. Francis and Sadiq looked at each other before looking back at the woman shaking before their eyes.

"Sadiq, take Cit to the barn with Katyusha and then take her inside," Francis ordered to which Sadiq nodded in reply.

0-0-0

Katyusha sighed as she headed off to her room, needing to try and sleep if she was going to be doing anything in the morning. She still couldn't take her mind off of things though and she had a rather restless night, only getting a couple hours of sleep at most.

When she got up the next morning, she got up and walked out of the room to at least try to get some fresh air. That's when she noticed that the sky was dark and rain pattered against the window. She let out a shaky breath. That's when she noticed the sweet scent coming from the kitchen. She didn't know what it was, but she liked it.

The Ukrainian woman was confused when she saw Sadiq cooking in the kitchen. She thought that was Sakura's job, but, of course, she hadn't been there all that long so she could have been wrong.

"Good Morning," Sadiq greeted when he noticed that he was no longer alone in the kitchen.

"Good Morning…" Katyusha greeted back.

"Couldn't sleep well?"

"Not really… I couldn't get my mind off of what happened last night."

Sadiq frowned and pulled a chair out for Katyusha. "Sit down and I'll get you something warm to drink," he commented. She nodded and did so, thinking it was nice of the Turkish man to offer. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Katyusha looked down at her hands, seeing the blood dried on the bandages. She felt a bit weak but, at the same time, she couldn't sleep either.

"Maybe…."

"I'll listen if you need it."

"Thank you." Sadiq nodded as he went back to cooking and making Katyusha some tea. He really couldn't imagine much of what she was going through, not having ever been in such a life-threatening situation like that. The Turkish man _wanted_ to help her somehow, but what _could_ he do?

"Here," Sadiq said once he had finished the tea and set it down on the table in front of her. He then set down a plate of soup for her as well. "This will help you feel better."

"I thought we weren't allowed to eat before the masters…" Katyusha said, looking up at him with confusion.

"Normally, but the party ran late and they're sleeping in. We can eat and do chores for the day."

"Oh. I see."

"Also, Master Bonnefoy wants to speak with you later."

Katyusha nodded as she looked back down at the food. She thanked him before she slowly began to eat, wondering where everyone else was. She had hoped Matthew was alright as well. She knew that she was going to watch over him to make sure his cold didn't get any worse during the party, but then everything else happened and she had completely forgotten. She would have to check up on him to make sure.

After all, if something _had_ happened and his fever had spiked again, it would have been all her fault. The Ukrainian woman shook his head of this thought for the time being as she tried to enjoy the warm meal that was set in front of her. She found it hard to do so though, her mind clouded with so many things.

When the time came for her 'meeting' with Francis, Katyusha found herself even more dazed than before. She was exhausted and her mind was spinning. She sat down in the living room where Francis was waiting for her and she shook the cobwebs from her head, needing to pay attention.

"How are you feeling?" Francis asked almost immediately after the servant woman had sat down in front of him.

"I'm doing okay… just a bit tired…" Katyusha replied, knowing that she was blinking a bit more than normal to keep herself awake.

"That's good. How are your hands?"

"Doing better. Most of the pain is gone thanks to Sadiq changing the bandages."

Francis nodded as he heard this. "That's good. I won't have you do a lot until your hands fully heal, so try not to stress yourself out too much."

"Yes, sir." Katyusha in- and ex-haled a breath, trying to keep herself calm and as composed as possible. She was finding it difficult to really keep her mind from wandering and to keep her body from forcing herself to fall asleep.

Francis noticed all these small things she was doing, but he didn't comment about it. "What I'm going to have you do is take care of Matthew until he's well again. He forced himself to the party last night and his fever spiked a bit."

Katyusha felt her stomach twist in a knot as she heard this, knowing she should have been more adamant about keeping Matthew from attending that party. Her slightly pale face became a bit paler and she controlled the shaking she wanted in her stomach.

"Is that alright with you?" Francis finished asking, noticing the sickly look on Katyusha's face. Katyusha nodded in reply, not sure if she could even speak with the way she was feeling at the moment. "Alright." Francis stood up. "Try not to push yourself, alright?"

Katyusha nodded again as she bowed a bit. She then stood up and walked out of the room, in- and ex-haling several breaths once the door was closed behind her. She had to keep herself as calm as possible and forget as much as she could that happened last night.

She couldn't let herself think about it anymore.

* * *

**A/N: I know this is kind of a short chapter, but this really wasn't supposed to be long in the first place. It was more of just a way to wrap up this part of the "arc" with these wolves and the party. Hope you enjoyed anyways and I will (hopefully) update a lot sooner than before. Thanks for reading and continuing to read this story~**


End file.
